Floors Magazine Floors Magazine June / July 2014 | Page 18

Inspiration for manufacturers to design new carpet
products for recycling or reuse at end of life was a key
theme at Carpet Recycling UK’s sixth Annual Conference,
held in Birmingham in June.
Record attendances for the 2014 event saw delegates
relishing networking opportunities at the pre-conference
dinner, sponsored for the third year running by Invista,
manufacturers of ANTRON® Carpet Fibres, followed by

“Given the quality of nominations was so high, this made
choosing the winners a difficult task for our judges,”
commented CRUK Director Laurance Bird.
“Having exceeded our 25% landfill diversion target two
years early, it was the right time to celebrate the
achievements of those who have made real advancements
in carpet recycling and re-use. CRUK is now
well-established enough to host an annual awards

Carpet Recycling UK conference
inspires ‘design for recycling’
the conference itself focussing on resources for the
Circular Economy.
Almost 100 delegates attended from a wide range of
different sectors, including representatives from the waste
management and retail sectors, plus contractors and those
interested in becoming carpet recyclers.
For the first time, CRUK’s annual conference featured an
awards ceremony recognising the innovation and
achievements of members, both individuals and
organisations, who have made important contributions to
the sector. There were 18 shortlisted companies across
four categories. The entries were judged by a panel of
independent judges including Richard Catt, CEO of the CFA
and Ray Georgeson of the Resource Association.
Winners and Highly Commended runners-up in four
categories were:
Innovation in Recycling - Desso Ltd (winner) and Anglo
Recycling Technology.
Take Back Partner of the Year – Anglo Recycling
Technology (winner) and Abingdon Flooring.
Re-Use Member of the Year – Greenstream Flooring CIC
(winner) and Carpet Tile Recycling
Recycling Champion – Tony Winder, owner of Winder
Carpets Ltd (winner) and Mike Collins, Operations Manager
at Abingdon Flooring.
Outstanding Achievement – Laurance Bird.

ceremony. Congratulations to everyone!”
Keen interest was shown in presentations from CRUK
manufacturing members Abingdon Flooring, Forbo (material
recovery) and Milliken (sustainability progress) who shared
their expertise and achievements to date in increasing the
sustainability of their products.
“We hope the extent of both these companies’ successes